Your Creative Intentions: The Monday Post ~ July 8, 2013

by Miranda on July 8, 2013

Commit to a regular creativity practice. Regularity — a daily practice, if possible — is key to staying in touch with how you make meaning.

What are your plans for creative practice this week? Given the specifics of your schedule, decide on a realistic intention or practice plan — and ink that time in your calendar. The scheduling part is important, because as you know, if you try to “fit it in” around the edges, it generally won’t happen. An intention as simple as “I will write for 20 minutes every morning after breakfast” or “I will sketch a new still life on Wednesday evening” is what it’s all about. If appropriate, use time estimates to containerize your task, which can make a daunting project feel more accessible.

Share your intentions or goals as a comment to this post, and let us know how things went with your creative plans for last week, if you posted to last week’s Monday Post. We use a broad brush in defining creativity, so don’t be shy. We also often include well-being practices that support creativity, such as exercise and journaling.

Putting your intentions on “paper” helps you get clear on what you want to do — and sharing those intentions with this community leverages the motivation of an accountability group. Join us!

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Last week I took no time to write and I can feel it … by the weekend’s end, I was burned out, craving time to think and be in my own space and wonder a bit. So, I’m committing to a blog post today and Thursday, plus some evening writing time tomorrow. And I’m buying a new sketchbook to start a visual journal — and buying another for my five-year-old. It’s something we can each work on alone together.

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times. On Saturday morning, my little guys packed off for nine days at Grandma’s house. I promptly set to a major weeding session in my office/library. While my space was mostly tidy, I was holding on to too many things that I didn’t a) love or b) need. My shelves were overflowing and the stacks of books and client work on my desk were making me claustrophobic. I was also about eight months behind on filing. So I spent hours upon hours making my space what I wanted it to be, recycling reams of paper, and filling up boxes and bags with things for Goodwill. I took a break for a matinee movie and dinner out with my husband — and then, two margaritas later, came home to make more progress. My oldest son (who I don’t get to see very often) was at home — as was my daughter — and the four of us chatted while I flitted in and out with my sorting and cleaning and tidying. After logging nearly 10K steps for the day just in doing things, I went to bed late and totally satisfied. It was basically a dream day — I did only things that I *wanted* to do and was totally in the moment the whole day long.

It wasn’t until the next day that I realized I’d forgotten to do my daily word quota. SHIT. After a 206-day long unbroken chain, I’d ended my streak — by accident! Time to start over again. (Note to self: Don’t cling! The point of the streak is to keep you focused on output. No reason to get your knickers in a twist just because you broke your 6.5 month chain BECAUSE YOU WERE BLISSFULLY EDITING YOUR FILING CABINET.) Sigh…..

After completing my office/library (and I have to say, it’s never looked better), I moved on to the little boys’ rooms. Major score there. And this morning made progress in other areas of the house. It feels SO good to get rid of things we no longer need and/or never wanted in the first place. Almost makes up for breaking my streak….

This week will be a heady mix of client work, more divestiture on the home front, and creative time. On Thursday my daughter and I are flying to CO for a college tour. Really looking forward to that. So basically this is one of the most awesome weeks EVER. Let’s hope I don’t forget my writing commitment again (one more reason why it’s good to front-load practice into the morning hours).

welcome!

Thanks for stopping by! In this creative community, you can share your creative intentions, receive support in making those goals happen, and discuss all things related to creativity. While we're primarily focused on the issues that creative mothers encounter, all are welcome.

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